A vampire, a werewolf and a ghost walk into a pub..... (Being Human)

Member Name: dextermummy

Product:	Being Human
Date:	09/03/09 (238 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Great dialogue, Russell Tovey

Disadvantages: Gotta wait for season 2

Being human started it's life as one of a handful of pilots aired in 2008 as part of a rebranding of BBC3, with the intention that one or more show be given a full series. A year, an online petition and a huge cast change later series one of Being Human sprung on to our screens. Now I wasn't with this show from the pilot, to be honest it snuck by me totally unnoticed, I wasn't even watching from episode 1. The premise of the show - in a nutshell, a vampire, a werewolf and a ghost share a house in Bristol - well to be honest it sounded like a bad joke. It wasn't til I was flicking through the channels one Sunday night, a bit bored, and I started watching episode 4, and I was hooked. Thank god for BBCiplayer for getting me caught up.


Like I have already said the plot involves some rather unusual housemates, them being:


George Sands - Played by Russell Tovey, the only main cast member to carry over from the pilot. George has an IQ of 154 and can speak five languages, but now works as a hospital porter after abandoning his former life having being scratched by a werewolf two years previous. The attack happened while hiking with a fellow holidaymaker on holiday in Scotland. They ended up lost in the woods during a full moon and the other tourist was brutally killed, George surviving with 'just' a scratch to his shoulder. George struggles to come to terms with his wolf side, trying his best to keep it separate from his 'normal' life. He and Mitchell met when Mitchell rescued him from a vampire attack and they have been together ever since. Georges' greatest fear is that he will kill someone while in wolf form, and for that reason normally transforms in a secure room under the hospital. While in human form George has no special powers although in the run up to a transformation he experiences increased strength and heightened senses.


John Mitchell - Played by Guy Flanagen in the pilot and Aidan Turner in the series proper, Mitchell is a 100+ year old vampire. A young soldier in World War I, he allowed himself to be turned to save the souls of his men, and becomes one of the darkest and greatest of the vampires. Nearly a century later he struggles with the morality of what he is, and is doing his best to stay "on the wagon" by not killing, although he is not always successful. The rules for vampires in Being Human is that they do not NEED to feed on human blood to survive but that they have an overwhelming desire for blood. Mitchell has a genuine affection for George and Annie, and an urge to become a real part of humanity, to the point where he invites all the neighbours round for tea, much to Georges' horror. He now works at the hospital as a cleaner, in an attempt to maintain a low profile. He is also very sexy (sorry, got to be said).


Anna 'Annie' Clare Sawyer - Played by Andrea Riseborough in the pilot and then by Lenora Crichlow. Annie was a young woman who had moved to the house with her fiancé just weeks before falling down the stairs to her death. Her ghost has been haunting the house scaring off tenants until the arrival of George and Mitchell who, much to her delight, can see her. She doesn't know why she hasn't crossed over (although this is revealed in the series), and her 'powers' depend on her mental state. When she first becomes friends with the lads and her confidence grows, it becomes so that other people can see her as well. Variations in her mental state throughout the series see her in various states of visibility, with poltergeist like powers and hearing the spirits of other dead people. She is still very much in love with her fiancé and is devastated to see he has moved on. At first her relationship with George is strained but she takes to Mitchell immediately. She doesn't sleep, can't eat or drink and has to spend all her time in the clothes she died in. She obsessively makes cups of tea much to the irritation of George.


I will dispense with the pilot shortly and sweetly. I only saw it after I had seen the entire first series, which may in part explain why I 100 percent agree with the changes made to the casting. The original cast were fine, Andrea Riseborough was great , but she plays an entirely different character to Lenora's Annie. Guy Flanagans' Mitchell is just a touch the wrong side of camp for my liking. The plot for the pilot introduces all the characters well and Russell Tovey is brilliant as always as George. The writer/creator Toby Whithouse has said that he considers the pilot canon, and although nothing in it directly contradicts the series proper, it does cover a lot of the same ground as the earlier episodes. Even some scenes and plotlines are directly covered. In this the series works better as a reboot rather than a direct follow on, and it certainly not essential viewing to enjoy the series, although perfectly entertaining in its own right.


Along with the main characters there are many minor players who are outstanding. First and foremost is Jason Watkins as Herrick, fellow vampire to Mitchell. Herrick acts as the leader to the local un-dead population, and uses his cover as a police officer to cover up after killings. He acts first as a tempting force for Mitchell, wanting him on side for his plans to better organise recruitment, then later as he realises the futility he becomes his nemesis. Watkins is terrific in the role, he oozes slimy evil from every pore, which comes as a chilling contrast to his tubby middle age man facade.


Annabel Scholey plays Lauren, a 20 year old girl who has been working at the A&E at the same hospital as George and Mitchell. We see Mitchell 'recruiting' her in episode 1, after which he goes back on the wagon leaving her angry that he has abandoned her. She seems to really enjoy the kill, her thirst for blood is palpable. Yet she seems to not be so keen on the rest of the vampires. She seems desperate to get Mitchell back for them but it feels like she wants it more for herself. Laurens' condition is the source of a lot of guilt for Mitchell.


Sinead Keenan plays Nina, ballsy ward sister and love interest to George. She hints at a past abusive relationship and seems won over by Georges sweet nature, making him even more desperate for her not to find out his secret. Her performance is funny and believable, the relationship she forms with George is genuinely touching.

Other persons of interest include a chain smoking ghost, a werewolf with a revelation for George, a sarcastic priest and a psycho vampire canteen lady .


As you can probably tell from the above there is a lot crammed into six episodes. It moves at a good pace and assumes some level of intelligence from the viewer, which is always nice. The dialogue is sharp and witty, the tone swinging seamlessly between dark and humorous and on more than one occasion it does both together brilliantly. It has some good and gory bits but nothing too gruesome.


The performances are excellent, especially from Russell Tovey who I can't praise enough. He is laugh out loud funny at least a couple of times an episode and can also move you to tears, all without losing any of Georges' believability . The interaction between the main players is both touching and honest, in particular between the lads. It feel like a group it would be nice to be a part of, these are people you could have as your friends. Even Annie, who I wasn't sure of at first, really grew on me, revealing herself to be funny and sweet and much tougher than she thought.


I feel I should mention the effects used in Georges transformation. They have been much praised on the discussion boards for the show, but to be honest they're just okay. Good I suppose for TV, but had this been a film I feel they would have been slated. Whilst it is still Russell it works really well but as soon as it changes to CGI it begins to go downhill, and the final werewolf, well it's just a bloke in a suit. But then I always think stuff like that should look cheesy - Dog Soldiers anyone?


So yeah, well worth a viewing. They have been repeating it late at night but I think that may have finished now. BBCiplayer stopped running it tonight (Sunday 8th March). You can still catch them on Youtube but you have to watch them in 10 minute chunks. Otherwise the DVD comes out 20th April, you can pre-order your copy online at Amazon for £15.98 , looks to have an r.r.p £24.99. Hopefully they'll pack it full of loads of extras.


And the super good news is that a eight episode series two has been commissioned so watch this space.


Thank you for reading.

Summary: The best thing the BBC have done... ever!